THE BRITISH PRODUCTS DIRECTORY

British made gifts -
buy British made gifts online. Suppliers of British made quality
and luxury gifts. These include chocolates, flowers, archive
newspapers, sweets, pewter, pottery, jewellery, handbags,
cufflinks, soap, luxury bath and body products and much
more.

No longer made (or so we
thought). - On this page you will find products that we
thought were no longer made; including old fashioned sweets,
imperial nuts and bolts and british made motorcycle parts.

English
Wine Producers - Find English and Welsh wines, local
vineyards, where to buy and the history of English wine.
English wines have a character and style that has enabled them to
excel in International competitions against some of the best
producers in the world.

Good Food Pages - a guide to local produce in the UK, listing
all the best food and drink producers and retailers across the
UK. We only list free-range (or organic) meat producers so you
can be sure any meat you buy via listed businesses has been
humanely reared.

British Products Directory homepage links

British Glass

Prior to the late seventeeth century, table glass made in
Britain copied the European and Venetian styles. However, with
the development of lead crystal by George Ravenscroft in 1674
glassworkers were able to make heavier glassware and began to
develop the English style.

Further refinements to the glassmaking process during the
18thC allowed the glass to be cut and engraved. By this time
Britain was well populated with glassworks including London,
Birmingham, Bristol, Newcastle, Stourbridge, Scotland and
Ireland.

During the 19thC and early 20thC Stourbridge ranked as
Britain's leading area for blown glass, producing some of the
finest examples of cameo, crystal, cased, applied and coloured
glass along with cutting and engraving of the highest
quality.

The 20thC however has witnessed the demise of the many major
British glassworks and within the last decade, the closing of
almost all the remaining large glass companies based around the
Stourbridge area.

With the closure of these large glass companies, there has
appeared a resurgence of small workshops populated by studio
craft artists, inovating and developing new styles and designs.
Once again putting British made glass back on the international
stage.

Local Produce

With the increase in the number of farm shops and nearly 300
farmer's markets across the country, more and more people are now
buying local produce.

Contrary to popular belief, buying local produce actually
increases the consumers' choice, as many more varieties of
produce are available than can be found on the supermarket
shelves.

Buying local produce also helps the environment and our
health.

Local produce does not need to be transported long distances
and requires less packaging.

Less intensive farming requires less in the way of pesticides
and fertilisers and organic produce is now widely
available.

By not restricting our choice of varieties, as the
supermarkets do, we are helping to maintain bio diversity.

Moreover fresh food not only tastes good but is also more
nutritious

We also help our local communities by buying locally. We
stimulate trade, help local employment, support small business
and help stop the decline of our towns and villages.

Good Food Pages lists all the very best food and drink
producers and retailers in the UK, many of which offer organic
and free-range produce

Big Barn can also help you find local produce. Their website
also includes recipes and very good articles on food and
farming.

No longer made (or so we thought)

For many years Britain led the world in developing standards,
perhaps most notably in engineering.

During the industrial revolution, the development of standard
metal sheet gauges and standard threads for screws, nuts and
bolts allowed machines to be made with a high degree of accuracy.
These in turn could then be used to make accurately dimensioned
components.

Engineers will remember; British Standard Whitworth (BSW),
British Association (BA) British Standard Pipe (BSP), British
Standard Fine (BSF) and even a standard for cycle threads -
British Standard Cycle (BSC). Many of these are still being used
but are no longer widely available.